Let’s face it. Wikipedia is amazing. Not only in the humanities but in just about every discipline one can think of. I think it’s great that its founder is being recognized in his lifetime. All too often great figures go by unnoticed because those upholding old patterns just can’t see what’s right before their eyes.

So what about academia. Is it really that great?

Well, I had a good experience, especially in undergrad studies. But looking back, Wikipedia entries are probably more balanced and informative than most of what my undergrad professors put out. Don’t be fooled. Some profs just follow a textbook or two. They might have read a few more books in the area. But generally, the sheer amount of info one can get from Wikipedia is better than what you’d get in an undergraduate humanities course.

Image by Abhi Sharma via Flickr

And the fee?

University fees have been steadily rising. And not only that. It’s been harder and harder for less privileged youths to get funding. Let’s not beat around the bush. University is a type of finishing school for many kids who can afford it. For those who can’t, it has been a symbol of oppression.

Oppression?

Yes oppression.

Just go to a small university town and compare the university students to the “townies” as some used to call them. The gap is painfully obvious.

But here’s the biggest joke of all. Universities can be corrupt. Not too many people realize it but corruption isn’t just about the most visible stories that hit the news. We tend to turn a blind eye to those things that benefit us, while scapegoating those that do not.

So I ask: Are some outspoken academic critics of Wikipedia not only pompous but corrupt windbags?

Of course, not all academics are snobs or directly involved in corrupt activities. But quite possibly the snooty narrow-mindedness of some is at least partly or indirectly supported by some form of institutional corruption.

So my message to anyone who has not been to university: Don’t feel any less than someone who has. What matters is to be able to think freely. And Wikipedia can be a fantastic launch pad for critical thinking. Sure, it only gives outlines. But they are excellent, densely interlinked outlines. And if you want to go further in a particular topic, Wikipedia articles do have a bibliography and external links. So the next step would be the public library, bookstore or just more web surfing.

Forget the pompous windbags. They’re probably carping because they fear that their status – and associated perks – are threatened. Their days are numbered. Knowledge, like anything else, should be available to anyone who wants and needs it.

Wikipedia founder honoured for services to academia but critics complain his site promotes 'intellectual laziness' https://t.co/OumtLAF66Z

Many people are concerned they will lose ambition if they become more spiritual. Or they would be concerned that they will lose their passion and drive to succeed in life and career. Becoming more spiritual however gives a different driving factor to your life. A driving factor that is related to purpose and meaning. One of the biggest challenges people have is to find their purpose and to find meaning at work and the reason is because you and I in school were never educated to find it.

If you are not driven spiritually, most likely you are driven by things such as career development, your future job title, money, power, something external that drives you. This usually leads to higher level of stress and some negative emotions daily. People are more easily upset or frustrated if they don’t get what they want. If this is the case that means your ambition is driven by your mind. The more separated you are between your heart and mind, the more you will suffer. If your mind, your beliefs or thoughts don’t get what they want they will object, resist or get frustrated. I remember a 35 year old lady who missed a promotion and couldn’t deal with the loss. Everyone would be disappointed to some extend but if after one year the frustration and anger is still there, the emotions are not serving you. Your ambition is working against you.

The Song of Los is the third in a series of illuminated books painted by Blake and his wife, collectively known as the Continental Prophecies – Wikipedia

On the other hand when people are becoming more spiritual (spiritual doesn’t mean, becoming more religious or becoming a monk) that means they live a life and have ambition that comes from within. A life and career that is driven by meaning and purpose, driven by internal motivation. According to the Buddhist philosophy your life is a journey towards realizing yourself. That life is a journey. A plant doesn’t blossom after giving water one time, it takes weeks, months and sometimes even years to make them grow and blossom. And this means the same for you, if you want to live a life on purpose, you have to shift your ambition and motivators from external to internal. This can take years to discover but people who are driven from within and driven by purpose are more likely to feel more peaceful, happy and content with them themselves and how they relate to others. They can and still will be successful in their career but they will have more passion for work and be sustainable in the long term.

Raf Adams is the Author of ”The Suited Monk” (available at amazon in Kindle and Hardcover), Professional Speaker, Entrepreneur, Certified Executive Coach. I help people in the field of life purpose, happiness, spirituality and self-mastery. I lived in Europe for 27 years and 7 years in Asia including China and Hong Kong. Connect with me at http://www.facebook.com/TheSuitedMonk, Twitter RafAd02 and sign up at http://www.suitedmonk.com for more articles and updates. If you enjoyed reading the article, please like and share with your friends!

Note – Since this article was first published, there have been some changes to articlesbase.com. The original links have been left intact.

I believe we should all strive daily to make it reality. Not just for people of color but for all kinds of marginalized groups and individuals. Sometimes people are discriminated against merely because they are different.

This is sad.

I suppose animals have always herded, flocked and swam together, picking on those who fall behind or to the outside. But we are human beings, not animals. We have the brain capacity to reroute and overcome our animal biases. At least, some of us do. Others seem so entrenched in their rigid or pathetically elitist ways that they just seem unmovable. But let’s hope that’s just how they seem and not how they are.

Image via Wikipedia

So in the title of this blog entry, I am talking about a nighttime dream while I was sleeping that was not like MLK’s visionary dream.

Mine was not a dream about the way things should be. Rather, it was a kind of realpolitiksdream. A dream about struggle, cunning and power.

On the other hand, when I think about it, maybe my dream isn’t totally dissimilar to MKL’s “I have a dream.” After all, the results are based on merit, not on prejudice about size.

Today’s tweet caught my eye not because I believe it. Cummon. The idea is that a large chunk of history never happened and we’ve just artificially filled in the gaps.

From a commonsense perspective this is rubbish. A quick web search brings up all sorts of historical persons and acts during this “phantom time.”

We have lots of records. Physical records.

However, I mention the idea today because, well, it did give me pause over something maybe related.

Some schools of metaphysical thought claim that we can’t be sure of anything but the present. For all we know, they say, the universe is huge, flickering bunch of “presents.”

So this present that I’m writing in is really – according to the theory – just a present with a lot of true, false or simulated memories.

The next flicker could be an entirely different present (with an alternate set of history and memories) and I wouldn’t know the difference.

This next present would be just as real as my current present. And then in the next flicker, who knows… an entirely new set of memories, history, beliefs.

Image – cwamkid.blogspot.ca

For those adhering to this idea, each moment is just as true, false or simulated as the next. And there could be countless flickering streams, all happening or possibly alternating at once.

Freaky?

Yeah, a bit.

But I think the notion is intellectually impossible to disprove.

If you find it hard wrapping your head around this, consider a computer processor. When multitasking, the processor alternates bits of data at super high speeds. Data flies through the processor so fast that tasks appear simultaneous to the user (for example, streaming music, transferring files and blogging).

But again your data is alternating at great speeds.

Could we be the same?

Obviously this is not a question to make the headlines in a 21st century where we’re mostly worried about lunatics with bad haircuts bombing us into oblivion.

Last night I had two scary dreams. One was that some burly stooges posing as workers for a home security company came to my childhood home to physically abduct me. I awoke startled.

The second dream had me back in university. My dorm room had been changed from a distant, satellite dorm at the edge of town to another room more central within the university village. All the books and items in the room looked vaguely familiar but not quite right. Next thing I knew, some creepy people came in, began to set up a portable operating table, and told me I was scheduled for an operation. When I asked an attendant “What operation?” she replied “I don’t know.”

Sensing serious danger, I asked to make a call and woke up, thinking I would have had to be like that guy in The Fugitive to escape something horrible.

Truly scary dreams. I hope they just mean slow down and take it easy for a while, which is what I intend to do today. Everyone else gets summer holidays and, although I’m not going anywhere physically different, I think I’ll just take in some arts and culture for a while, and post my discoveries here.

The most recent discovery is tweeted at the top of the page. I like this painting. Notice how the more important guy has better, more ostentatious clothing and bigger, more expressive eyes. What really struck me, however, was the larger globe in the picture. Fascinating how mythological creatures are intertwined with the scientific mapping (zoom in to see). We’ve lost that mythic connection to science, although some writers like James Hillman suggest that we’re just fooling ourselves. The mythic is still present and even science is a kind of mythic pattern.

I guess that’s in line with what I’ve been arguing all along here at Earthpages.org and Earthpages.ca. But as I said, it’s my holiday, of sorts, and I don’t feel like going into it any further right now!

Drawing of Mozart in silverpoint, made by Dora Stock during Mozart’s visit to Dresden, April 1789 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The other discovery, made last night, is something I’m listening to right now: Venice Classical Radio. I almost feel like I’m living in some little flat in Venice while listening to this excellent station. The selections are accessible but relatively uncommon. I’ve only heard one Mozart staple, which I enjoyed anyhow (pretty hard not to like Mozart).

Flickr Photos

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Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are the world's most dangerous security issue, and must be resolved fast and diplomatically to avoid war, a top United Nations envoy said after a rare visit to North Korea.

Taken today at one of the more economically disadvantaged parishes in Toronto (area-wise). Seems these amazing people are doing the most for kids this Xmas. And isn’t that usually the way? Those with a lot grasp on to it and … Continue reading →

I’ve been banging away at my computer, getting Win 7 reinstalled after experiencing some wifi dropouts with Win 10. Such is life. After a few-nail biting moments, I managed to get everything running right again. So I’m celebrating (before bed!) … Continue reading →

So I uploaded the previous pic (see below) into the Android version of Pixlr (on Windows via AndY), which has a really nice assortment of free, downloadable fonts. This saves time and hassle, not having to install extra fonts for … Continue reading →

Here’s an interesting twist on a pic I took Sunday night. The photo itself is unexceptional. A 12x zoom of a statue high up in St. Mike’s Cathedral. Recently, however, I discovered the Prisma app for Android. This time I … Continue reading →

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Prayer can be personal and social, these two expressions often overlapping but not always. Sometimes we just pray alone, other times while gathered together. Both types of prayer – personal and social – are almost always spiritual, be they couched … Continue reading →

Yeah they said you was high-classed well, that was just a lie – Elvis Presley, “Hound Dog” Elvis Aaron Presley (1935-77) was an American rock and roll singer and guitarist, born in Tupelo, Mississippi. He is generally seen as the … Continue reading →